236 Annual Meeting of the 



and its papers have again and again been copied, and most favora- 

 bly noticed in the scientific publications of this Continent, of Great 

 Britain, and the Continent of Europe. During the visit of the 

 Prince of Wales to this city, we presented His Royal Highness 

 with an address, and a copy of three volumes of The Canadian 

 Naturalist already published, and also with a very handsome 

 volume of curious meteorological observations by Dr. Smallwood, 

 one of our members, which were graciously received and acknow- 

 ledged. I feel that I may thus freely eulogize the labours of our 

 Society, because while I have constantly attended to all its pro- 

 ceedings for some years past, and for the last two years have filled 

 the office of your President, yet I can lay no claim to the honor of 

 having contributed to the scientific work that has been accom- 

 plished. I cordially give my help to encourage what others, far 

 abler in every department of science than myself, have achieved ; 

 and while such men as Sir William Logan, Principal Dawson, the 

 Rev. A. F. Kemp, Mr. Billings, and others, continue to give their 

 time and talents to its support, I am confident that it ought to 

 receive cordial and liberal encouragement from the public of Mon- 

 treal. It is an Institution which, though still in, what we may con- 

 sider, an infant state, and with its Museum, as compared with those 

 of the old world collections, only as it were commencing its ex- 

 istence, yet reflects credit upon this city, and I trust will continue 

 to do so more and more. I certainly regret that we have not yet 

 got in Montreal some regular and permanent building for carrying 

 on Astronomical and Meteorological Observations. We are 

 however now arrived at a time, when it is not unreasonable to 

 expect occasional acts of well considered munificence amongst our 

 wealthier citizens to enrich our city with useful Institutions, whe- 

 ther connected with Religion or Charity, Learning or Science ; 

 and I trust that the example recently set by one of them in con- 

 nection with McGill College may lead to many similar instances. 

 Perhaps amongst them we may someday find the means of estab- 

 lishing an Observatory in connection with this Institution, and 

 carrying on a regular course of scientific observations. But at 

 any rate whatever may be hereafter accomplished in any fresh 

 departments, we must not allow the " Natural History Society of 

 Montreal " to stop in its present onward progress, or to fail in 

 making good its own special work, either for want of talent ready 

 to labour in its cause, or a grateful public ready to support it. 

 Principal Dawson then read the following : — 



